A student (left) receives her COVID-19 vaccination at Queen Elizabeth School Old Students' Association Secondary School through the government's school outreach service for COVID-19 vaccination, July 2, 2021. (PHOTO/HKSAR GOVERNMENT)
HONG KONG – The Hong Kong government said around 69,900 Hong Kong residents have received COVID-19 vaccination on Friday, hitting a new daily record.
More than 3.84 million doses have been administered so far since the financial hub launched the citywide vaccination drive on Feb 26, the government said in a release issued late Friday.
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Some 2.31 million people, or about 33.9 percent of the eligible population, have taken at least one shot of the vaccine, while more than 1.53 million people have been fully vaccinated.
The government also launched on Friday the school outreach service for COVID-19 vaccination. More than 700 students, teachers and parents received COVID-19 shots at Queen Elizabeth School Old Students' Association Secondary School (QESOSASS) in Tin Shui Wai and Hong Kong Taoist Association Ching Chung Secondary School (CCSS) in Sau Mau Ping on the first day of the service’s launch.
Hong Kong launched the citywide vaccination drive on Feb 26 and more than 3.84 million doses have been administered so far
The two schools, along with five others, were the first to opt for the outreach vaccination service after the government lowered the minimum age for receiving the vaccine to 12 from 16.
Students receive BioNTech vaccines through the scheme.
Secretary for the Civil Service Patrick Nip Tak-kuen said after visiting QESOSASS that he was delighted to see many students get vaccinated on a school campus.
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Secretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan Siu-chee and Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung jointly visited CCSS on Friday. They called on parents to arrange for their children to get vaccinated as soon as possible so as to build an immunity barrier for the community.
Apart from the outreach service, schools could also reserve time slots for vaccination at community vaccination centers through group booking since last Monday.
Nip said more than 300 primary and secondary schools have expressed interest in either one of the services so far.